Drivin N Cryin is a rock ‘n’ roll institution. From their days as MTV-approved radio stars to their rebirth as DIY icons of the American underground, they’ve spent three and a half decades building a legacy grounded in sharp songwriting, southern stomp, and loud, life-affirming shows.
South Carolina-based Americana rockers The High Divers find liberation after the end of a painful and volatile relationship on “Our Love is a Fire.”
The band’s willingness to incorporate new ideas into their music while staying close to their familiar sound is what keeps fans around and adds new ones to the fold. With Live the Love Beautiful they continue to do just that taking their music to new places with recently acquired guitarist Laur Joamets and producer Aaron Lee Tasjan.
Columbus, Ohio-based artist Angela Perley salutes struggling musicians on the resolute “Local Heroes,” a pensive, slow-burning country ballad about the seemingly never-ending grind of a road warrior. From long drives between gigs to splitting the paltry earnings between band members, the song captures a night in the life of many musicians.
“All this driving has got me thinking about how small I really am,” Perley sings. “Playing music in some dark room/ Splitting money with the band.”
Perley says the song, the latest release from her forthcoming album 4:30 (out on Aug. 2), was written with her own heroes and peers in mind.
“‘Local Heroes’ is an ode to every musician that is out there grinding it out, night after night, year after year. It’s my salute to them, to let them know they are not alone, that their voice matters, and to keep going,” Perley tells Wide Open Country. “It’s also in memory of some of the greats we lost too soon, including many musicians and friends I’ve seen follow either a destructive path or just completely give up on music.”
“There are a lot of smoke and mirrors in the music business and I don’t think people realize the weight and amount of pressure that is put on musicians mentally and physically. To be away from your family and loved ones most of the time can be isolating and can cause strain on those relationships,” Perley continues. “There can be some casualties involved in friendships too, when people perceive certain amounts of success in others. Some will take the route of jealousy and actively root against their peers instead of standing and celebrating with them and that has never made sense to me…Overall though, the song is a love song to other musicians out there. It’s about hope and about sending love and strength to those on their journey.”
It’s been a long past year of milestones for Kate Vargas since the June 2018 PopMatters premiere of a previous single, “7 Inches”.
Vargas tells PopMatters about her latest single, “Nothing Turns My Lock”: “This song started at the Holiday Music Motel in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, one of the most magical places on earth. Owned and operated by Pat Macdonald (Timbuk3, Purgatory Hill) and Melaniejane (Purgatory Hill), the place functions as a fun retro hotel year-round but, three times out of the year, 30-40 songwriters and a handful of engineers from all over are invited there for a week of songwriting. On the first night, we spin the bottle for our songwriting partners, write and record a song in about 24 hours, and then do it again the next night and the next night.”
RJ Frometa sat down with Signe Marie Rustad to discuss her new song “Die With Your Boots On” as well as her upcoming album set to release in November, 2019. Rustad describes the writing process for the project: “Most of the songs off the record were written before a writer’s block that lasted about 3 years settled in. At that time, as strange as it sounds, living and breathing was about enough for me to be inspired to write – thus the title: When Words Flew Freely. Having an open mind and heart is mostly what it’s about for me to be able to write.”